Palestinians

The latest row over prisoner payments has highlighted the PA’s longstanding legitimacy deficit and its potential inability to control events on the ground if public unrest escalates this summer.

Throughout his tenure as leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas has studiously avoided grooming a successor, instead consolidating his control over numerous Palestinian entities and sidelining officials he perceived as threatening to his rule. When he eventually exits the scene, Abbas will leave many leadership roles to be filled—including in the PLO, Fatah movement, and national security agencies.

Although the pandemic’s full regional consequences remain murky, some early trends are becoming clear, from caution among certain proxy patrons, to escalation among others, and a looming financial crunch for all.

The question of whether the ICC is able to proceed with cases against Israeli and Palestinian officials may hinge on fuzzy international legal criteria and competing arguments by sympathetic governments.

The painting and the historical scene it depicts remind us that many aspects of the coronavirus pandemic—from equipment rationing to ‘Orient blaming’ to political clashes with medical science—are nothing new.

Viewing regional issues through this broader strategic lens will require Washington to accept painful trade-offs and take a tougher stance with difficult allies.

Fortress Israel raised its drawbridges early, though its resultant economic and political outlook is just as uncertain as the rest of the world’s.

Although another abortive government formation process is possible, the main players could assemble an assortment of coalitions that differ widely in their approach to West Bank annexation and other issues.

The proposal could create a powerful new point of reference for any future Israeli leader, but it must not be adopted as a rigid operative blueprint.